BBC News Web-site, here, reports the death of David Willey OBE, the long-serving BBC foreign correspondent.

David was well-known for being the BBC reporter in The Vatican since 1972 until his retirement.

The BBC Report is by Aleem Maqbool Religion Editor and George Wright.

"David Willey, who served as a BBC foreign correspondent for more than half a century, has died aged 93.
He reported from Algeria, Vietnam and China, but is best known for his time in Rome as the BBC's Vatican correspondent, where he covered the papacies of five popes.
Widely regarded as one of the most experienced journalistic voices on the Vatican, Willey wrote a book on Pope Francis and was awarded an OBE for services to broadcast journalism."

The Wikipedia biography is here.


From BBC News Online:

TV presenter Dermot Murnaghan has died, a year after he revealed he had been diagnosed with stage four prostate cancer.

The former BBC, ITV and Sky News journalist was 68.

"It is with great sadness that the family of Dermot Murnaghan announces that he passed away at home in North London earlier this morning," his family said in a statement posted to his X account. "He died peacefully with his family at his side."

A fixture on British TV news across five decades, he presented flagship programmes including the ITV Evening News and the BBC News at Six and Ten.

Murnaghan was a main presenter of BBC Breakfast from September 2002 to December 2007 and also hosted quiz show Eggheads.

When he revealed his diagnosis last summer, he said he was "responding positively" to treatment and "feeling well".

He became an outspoken advocate for men to get tested for the condition.

"Needless to say my message to all men over 50, in high risk groups, or displaying symptoms, is get yourself tested and campaign for routine prostate screening by the NHS," he said.

"Early detection is crucial. And be aware, this disease can sometimes progress rapidly without obvious symptoms."

His family thanked the public "for the many, many kind messages of goodwill that he received over the last year since his diagnosis of Stage IV prostate cancer and his subsequent campaigning to raise awareness for screening programmes for the disease".

Murnaghan started his career at local newspapers, before later moving to Channel 4 News and fronting ITV shows including The Big Story and the News at 10 from 1993 to 1997, and the channel's Evening News and Nightly News from 1999 to 2001.

He moved to the BBC in 2002, as one of the main hosts of BBC Breakfast, the Six O'Clock News and the Ten O'Clock News.

He presented Eggheads for 11 years from 2003, and was one of the faces of Sky News from 2007 to 2023.

Murnaghan also hosted the documentaries Crimes That Shook Britain for Channel 5 and Killer Britain for the Crime + Investigation UK channel.

He later launched his podcast Legends of News, speaking to other seasoned journalists and correspondents about major stories they had covered.

'A legend of news'
Tributes have been pouring in for Murnaghan.

"He was peerless in the presenter chair," Sky News' political editor Beth Rigby posted on X.

"I loved being on set, or in Downing Street, with Dermot because he was always in absolute command but so cool too. He made handling the most high-pressure moments look effortless."

Sky News presenter Anna Botting said he would "always be a legend of news".

Former Prime Minister David Cameron, who has also been treated for prostate cancer, said the presenter's decision to highlight the importance of testing will have helped many men.

"I think it's really important that Dermot came out in the way that he did - as in his broadcasting life, he did it with incredible clarity and just simplicity," Lord Cameron told Sky News.

"And as someone who was so well-known to people through his broadcasting career over 40 years, it will have had a huge impact."

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said Murnaghan was a "broadcasting legend who we have lost far too soon".

"His tireless advocacy, encouraging more men to get tested for prostate cancer, will no doubt have saved lives."

Jake Fowler writes:-
It is with great sadness that I post that my wife Gill Fowler died on June 25th in St Gemma's hospice in Leeds. Gill was a film editor at BBC Leeds from 1985 until 2003 working on BBC Look North in the old Woodhouse Lane studio. She also worked on Regional films produced in Leeds (now BBC Yorkshire), the so-called sub-opts when Bill Greaves was head of Region. She worked with Patrick Hargreaves and Roger Keech alongside colleagues such as Ted Croot, Mike Denby, Martin Harris and Steve Turner. Training originally as a Librarian at Leeds University, Gill always want to train as an editor and spent many years working on the news output also editing items for the BBC National news as well as Breakfast Time and Newsnight. It's where we met when I started as a Regional Journalist at Look North in 1987, she was the film editor on my first day when I was assigned the news NIB's for the middle of the programme which invariably got dropped when things overran! Thanks to many BBC colleagues who have sent cards and condolences.

Here is an obituary for Brian Large by Hazel Wright from "The Guardian".
Brian was a TV director, mostly of classical music, for the BBC and many international broadcasters.

"Brian Large, director of opera and concerts on TV, born 16 February 1937; died 23 May 2026"

Just to say following a successful "reunion" a few years back we can highly recommend RIVERSIDE STUDIOS at HAMMERSMITH, good Public Transport. No need to book, there is a cafe, a huge mezzanine space with Art/Pictures, Toilet Facilities, a Cinema, Theatre, Individual rooms can be booked if necessary, the river to stroll along for fresh air.

"The Guardian" reports that there are changes to BBC correspondent's priorities, here.



"The task of briefing the nation on Radio 4’s agenda-setting Today programme has been one of the most urgent tasks facing the BBC’s top journalists for decades.

Insiders at the corporation, however, say that duty has effectively been downgraded, after an edict that will result in correspondents prioritising making content for TikTok, Instagram and other digital platforms."

This is from RadioToday:-

"BBC Radio Leeds is mourning the sudden death of long-serving journalist and producer Andrew Evans, who died at the age of 57 while on holiday in France on 21st June.

Andrew, known on air as Producer Andy, had worked at the BBC for three decades and was a familiar voice to listeners of the breakfast show presented by Rima Ahmed.


Throughout his career, Andrew produced programmes, mentored staff and presenters, and served as the station’s news editor, covering significant regional stories."


There is more, here.


The BBC News web-site has a report here.

Roger Mosey is a former senior BBC executive. His roles included Editor of the Today programme, Controller of Radio 5 Live, Head of Television News and Director of Sport. After leaving the BBC in 2013, he was Master of Selwyn College, Cambridge.

"Welcome to the Media Society’s latest Substack newsletter. This edition features former BBC TV and radio executive Roger Mosey analysing the shutting down of BBC programmes like The World Tonight and the Midnight News."

Here is Roger's view from "The Media Substack"

Ex BBC Make up Designer Elizabeth Rowell has written to ask me to share some very sad news with you all.  Liz just received a card with this news from a lady who had been attending to Dawn Alcock in a Care Home in Spalding Lincolnshire.  Dawn died on 5th June 2026.  Her partner Sound Recordist Ian Sansom died a few years previously. rip Dawn.

We have received the following from Margaret's family:-


I am the nephew of Margaret Stagg of Sale Green, Worcestershire, who sadly passed away on 20th May.

Mrs. Stagg was head of design at the BBC Pebble Mill in Birmingham during the 70’s into the 80’s and was married to BBC3 senior radio announcer Christopher Stagg, who passed away in 2012.

The funeral service will be held at St John the Baptist Church, Crowle, Worcestershire at 1 pm on 13th July followed by a wake at The Chequers pub, Crowle.